Bouquets and Cafes
by soccer-smoothie
Summary: Hiei still hates his job, and he still hates coffee. Not much has changed- including his relationship with Kurama, much to his dismay. Kurama is charming, and fixes that. (Short Sequel to "Coffee and Flowers.") (T for very minor language.)


Uhhh I reread my old fic, "Coffee and Flowers," and kind of decided to drabble on a sequel. It kinda sucks but whatever.

series: yuyu hakusho  
pair: hiei/kurama  
rating: T for slight language  
Summary: Hiei still hates his job, and he still hates coffee. Not much has changed- including his relationship with Kurama, much to his dismay. Kurama is charming, and fixes that.

xx

_"Oi." He murmurs, grabbing a bouquet from next to him. "I wanna buy some flowers."_

_Kurama is a bit taken aback at first, but quickly smiles at Hiei's interest in his work, sudden as it is._

_"Sure thing." As soon as Hiei pays, Kurama leans on his hands. "Are they for your sister?"_

_That gets a small huff out of Hiei, and he shoves the flowers at Kurama._

_"They're for you, dumbass."_

It's been three weeks. Three weeks since Hiei completely disregarded his own personal boundaries, and reached out in a way he never really had before. Three weeks since the ridiculously gorgeous Shuichi "Kurama" Minamino had accepted his flowers with a smile and a warm 'thank you.'

And yet, here Hiei is, standing behind the same old coffee shop counter, watching Kurama sitting alone at a booth from the corner of his eye.  
It's not that nothing changed between them after that incident, or anything. The problem was only that Hiei had no clue where to go from here. They flirted in the mornings at the counter, and when Hiei is lucky, he takes his break early and sits with the redhead while he drinks. Sometimes Hiei stops by the flower shop, or has lunch with Kurama between his classes, too. It's really not too bad of a compromise, especially for someone who has never been in a relationship before this. But it's…frustrating, to say the least. Always the same routine, and always the same places. Hiei can't help but want something different to happen.

A group of teenage girls sitting near Kurama giggle when he smiles at them, and Hiei clenches his teeth.

It's petty, and he knows it. Hiei has spent his whole life not giving a shit about other people, so now that he does, he can see how ridiculous he is acting. Everyone else probably can, too. Especially Kurama, who just stopped in front of the counter and is giving him that stupidly pretty smile.

"Hiei." Kurama murmurs. Hiei scowls.

"Hm."

"I have to get back to work now." The redhead gives him a look, like he's trying to figure out just what Hiei could be thinking, and suddenly the shorter of the two feels bad. How dumb. It's not like he did anything wrong.

"Okay." He replies, and turns to get the next order- only to stop and look at Kurama again, after his name is repeated once more.

"I have tomorrow off from school. I know you don't work Saturdays…" the redhead starts, and Hiei definitely does not get a little excited.

"We should go out." Okay, so he's excited. Kurama is asking him on a date right in front of that gaping group of girls, and it is extremely satisfying. He feels his scowl fade.

"Sure. Should I come get you?"

Kurama's smile is relieved now, and he nods. Hiei wonders if Kurama was nervous- it seems like a ridiculous notion, but he does know that the redhead was also new to the whole romance thing…

Hiei decides to think about that later, and arranges to pick Kurama up from his place in the morning. The line is getting impatient, so Kurama takes his leave, and Hiei maybe takes his bosses' advice for once.

(Or not. Smiling really isn't his thing.)

xx

Hiei should've thought this through more. Sitting in a cafe very similar to the one he works in, watching Kurama sip his cup of tea is eerily similar to every other day they see each other. The place lacks the smell of coffee, which is nice, but it's got the same teas and breakfast foods as always. Kurama doesn't seem to mind, though, filling the quiet atmosphere with chatter about his classes and the insufferable new biology professor who "doesn't know the difference between a peony and a poppy."

To be fair, Hiei doesn't know the difference, either. He doesn't plan on saying that, though.

Despite it being very similar to the usual routine, this date, as mundane as it is, doesn't really bother Hiei. Kurama seems pleased, a small smile on his face even as he complains, and so Hiei finds himself content. His usual scowl is faded into more of a bored frown, and he could even be considered interested in what his boyfriend (he'd never get used to calling Kurama that) is saying, throwing out a few replies once in a while.

Breakfast goes quickly, and Kurama informs Hiei that he wants to take him shopping. Window shopping, specifically, to Hiei's horror. He definitely is not interested in it, but Kurama is adamant, and Hiei isn't about to start a fight over something as stupid as walking down a street. Although, he does make a few choice remarks along the way. ("This is the dumbest thing I've ever done." "Shut up, Hiei.")

Still, Hiei goes, and despite the fact that he doesn't give a shit about the cute little plants in that window, or the jewelry on sale in that one, he doesn't mind the way Kurama's hand has found his. It's, dare he say, nice, and he almost doesn't care when Kurama drags him into a little shop to look more closely at something.

How Hiei ended up buying Kurama another bouquet, he'll never remember.

What he will remember, though, is the way Kurama's smile looked, and how god damn ridiculous he feels every time he sees it. Stupid green eyes make it worse, too.

He really likes those eyes, he thinks. Yukina will be ecstatic.  
They walk to Kurama's home, still hand in hand, and Hiei thinks he can get used to this. Used to the way Kurama is looking at him right as they stop at his door.

"This was fun, Hiei." Kurama murmurs, and Hiei shrugs.

"Hm."

They stand there, and Hiei doesn't really feel like letting go of Kurama's hand just yet, so he stays. Yukina is still at work, anyways- she won't mind him being a little late.

It takes Hiei a moment to realize that Kurama is leaning down towards him, but when he does, he surprises himself by leaning back instead of flinching away. They had never kissed before now, and the way Kurama's lips are chapped is kind of a shock. Hiei doesn't mind, though.

In fact, he decides as the redhead pulls back and smiles, cheeks pink, Kurama is a pretty good kisser.


End file.
